Budweiser Clydesdales visit Whitefish
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. Folks lined the street to get a look at the horses and snap photos. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. Folks lined the street to get a look at the horses and snap photos. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. Each team travels with a Dalmatian, which has been long associated with horses and valued for their speed. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. Folks lined the street to get a look at the horses and snap photos. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. Folks lined the street to see the horses and snap photos of them. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening. The walked down Central Avenue before making a stop in front of the Whitefish Depot. (Heidi Desch/Whitefish Pilot)
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening.
The famous Budweiser Clydesdales made an appearance in Whitefish Wednesday evening.
The eight-horse hitch pulled the red beer wagon along Central Avenue for about an hour making several stops for folks to take a closer look and snap pictures of the horses.
The horses are making several appearances throughout the Flathead Valley. They will be at the Majestic Valley Arena on July 1 from 1 to 5 p.m. and appear in the Bigfork Fourth of July parade at noon.
To be chosen for the Budweiser Clydesdale hitch, the horses must meet certain requirements, according to the website for the Warm Springs Ranch in Missouri where the horses are bred. They must be at least four years of age, stand about 18 hands — or six feet — at the shoulder, weigh an average of 2,000 pounds, must be bay in color, have four white legs and a blaze of white on the face and a black mane and tail. A single hitch horse will consumer as much as 20 to 25 quarts of feed, 50 to 60 pounds of hay and 30 gallons of water per day.
Each team travels with a Dalmatian, which has been long associated with horses and valued for their speed. The dogs were once known to run between the wheels of coaches and provided companionship to the horses.
The traveling Budweiser Clydesdale hitches are based in St. Louis, Missouri; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Merrimack, New Hampshire.